Texas Rangers - TeamReport

February 18, 2013|Reuters

Will Holland mature into the pitcher who seemed poised for greatness at the end of 2011 or will he continue to make mistake pitches up in the zone when ahead in the count? Will Ogando be able to have the same effectiveness in the rotation that he did for the first half of 2011 before his lack of an off-speed pitch and durability issues led the Rangers to returning him to the bullpen for 2012? Who will win the No. 5 spot? While Perez is the top prospect in the mix, he has not dominated in two seasons at Triple-A. McClellan offers the club a swing-type pitcher who could fit in for two months or so until RHP Colby Lewis returns from the DL. Also in the mix are LHP Robbie Ross and RHP Justin Grimm.

PROJECTED BULLPEN:

RHP Joe Nathan

RHP Jason Frasor

RHP Josh Lindblom

RHP Tanner Scheppers

LHP Robbie Ross

LHP Michael Kirkman

RHP Kyle McClellan, RHP Evan Meek or RHP Randy Wells

The bullpen suffered significant losses in free agency (Mike Adams and Koji Uehara) and by moving RHP Alexi Ogando to the rotation. There are reinforcements potentially on the way in rehabbing RHP Joakim Soria (who might be ready in May) and RHP Neftali Feliz (who might return after the All-Star break). As spring starts, however, only one role is defined: Nathan is the closer.

Frasor brings all the toughness and competitiveness that Adams had, but after the first trip to the DL of his career last year, there are questions about how well his declining stuff will play. If he's sharp, he's the likely set-up man. Nothing else is even remotely close to being solved. Lindblom and Scheppers have talent, but neither has had long-term success in the majors. Ross could be involved in the rotation battle. Kirkman has traditionally struggled with command in the spring. And the long reliever role could be completely up for grabs among a handful of non-roster veterans.

PROJECTED LINEUP:

1. 2B Ian Kinsler

2. SS Elvis Andrus

3. DH Lance Berkman

4. 3B Adrian Beltre

5. RF Nelson Cruz

6. LF David Murphy

7. C A.J. Pierzynski

8. 1B Mitch Moreland

9. CF Leonys Martin/Craig Gentry (platoon)

If Kinsler bounces back from a subpar year and if Berkman bounces back from injury, the offense could still be potent for the middle guys even without Josh Hamilton. Then again, Cruz is under investigation for PED use and a suspension could create another hole in the lineup.

The bottom half is full of left-handed hitters and the possibility for platoons is not great. As the team goes to spring training, there isn't an attractive right-handed-hitting option for Murphy against lefties, though he had solid numbers against lefties in limited playing time in 2012. Pierzynski, a lefty hitter, plays more than any catcher in the majors. Moreland, another lefty, has to start facing lefties in order to get a feel for whether he is a full-timer. The only platoon is in center, where the lefty-hitting Martin will face right-handers and Gentry, a right-handed hitter, will face lefties.

TOP ROOKIES: INF Jurickson Profar was ranked the No. 1 prospect in the game by Baseball America, but the Rangers don't have a full-time position for him. He'll either have to back up Elvis Andrus and Ian Kinsler in the middle or go to Class AAA to start the year. INF Mike Olt, the No. 2 prospect in the system, could join Profar on a rookie-heavy bench. Olt had 28 homers at Class AA Frisco last year and spent the last two months of the season in the majors (though he was limited by foot problems). With both players, the Rangers will have to justify whether the benefits of a limited role in the majors outweigh consistent playing time in the minors.

MEDICAL WATCH:

--RHP Colby Lewis (right shoulder surgery in July 2012) expects to be throwing off a mound by early March. He could return to the rotation in May.

--RHP Neftali Feliz (Tommy John surgery in August 2012) is viewed by the team as a potential "trade-deadline acquisition" in 2013, meaning he could return at the end of July or in August.

--RHP Joakim Soria (Tommy John surgery in April 2012) is expected to miss the first month of the season, but he might be ready to return by May.

--DH Lance Berkman (two knee surgeries in 2012) is hitting and running, but he might not play during the first few weeks of spring training games.

--RHP Kyle McClellan (right shoulder surgery in July 2012) was throwing off a mound at the start of camp, but he was being eased back into action.